Co-founder Hicham Bahou reflects on 25 years of L’Boulevard and its musical legacy [Interview]

At twenty-five years old, the L'Boulevard Festival is far from a passing fad. Its twenty-third edition (September 18–21, 2025) at Casablanca’s RUC stadium once again confirmed it is a landmark for urban and alternative music lovers of all ages in Morocco. Whether the draw is rap and hip-hop, fusion and contemporary sounds, or rock and metal, the festival has something for everyone. Organized by the non-profit association EAC-L’Boulvart (Education in Arts and Culture), it continues to bridge the gap between emerging local talent and established national and international acts, creating a space for exchange and learning that goes far beyond entertainment.

Co-founder of the festival alongside Mohamed Merhari (Momo), Hicham Bahou spoke with Yabiladi about how the event has grown into an intergenerational meeting ground. Originally designed as a platform for young people searching for an artistic space and a voice, L’Boulevard has become both a springboard for careers and a vehicle for values of sharing, mentorship, and citizenship, notably through workshops and awareness initiatives alongside its music programming. It’s a virtuous cycle that keeps expanding and maturing decade after decade.

How is L’Boulevard doing at 25 years and its 23rd edition?

This year’s edition has been fantastic. It started strong on Thursday, September 18, with the rap and hip-hop day. The L’Boulevard Springboard was a success, and some of the most anticipated artists drew huge crowds. We also had some pleasant surprises. The audience came out in force, and the atmosphere was electric.

On Friday, the lineup included Bombino, Asms, Souakina Fahsi, and Issam Elias. Each day followed the same structure: the Springboard groups opened, followed by invited performers.

Saturday was all about heavy rock and metal, and the RUC stadium was packed. The audience for these genres is among our most loyal. Many young people traveled specifically from cities like Oujda and Agadir. This success shows that L’Boulevard remains one of the rare spaces with a large open stage dedicated to metal.

Sunday’s closing program was more varied, appealing to a wider audience. We’re very satisfied with this four-day format. We welcomed both new and returning festival-goers, with everything running smoothly thanks to experienced teams, real-time management, strong logistics, and committed partners. All of this ensured the festival’s success.

Over 25 years, the festival seems to have built a kind of family-like, intergenerational circle. What do you take away from these encounters, especially with early attendees who later became artists or professionals thanks to L’Boulevard?

We’re now seeing almost a third generation of loyal attendees: those from 1999–2000, from 2010–2012, and now the current audience. You can see it in the crowd and in the music itself, across all styles. It has even become a programming consideration for us.

The rap and hip-hop scene in particular is evolving at breakneck speed. The time it takes for an artist to emerge and gain popularity is much shorter today. In the past, it could take six to eight years. Now it might be two years, or even one, before new headliners become icons for younger audiences.

As organizers, we need to adapt to this momentum. That’s why we rely heavily on advisors who understand the artistic landscape of each style. We receive countless proposals and spend a lot of time in discussion before shaping the final program.

This process also extends beyond our immediate team. It includes musicians, former professionals, emerging artists, and even young fans who know their peers and closely follow how genres, especially hip-hop, have transformed over the past 15 years.

Does this evolution push you to reflect on how L’Boulevard positions itself with Generation Z, who perceive festivals differently and experience music largely online?

Absolutely. We’re working with a generation born into the digital world, oriented toward social networks and digital platforms. Emerging bands today connect with their audiences directly through Spotify, YouTube, and TikTok. Before, they needed radio airplay or record labels and often struggled to book live shows.

All of these shifts influence our reflections, starting with programming that listens to an audience whose habits and tastes evolve faster than ever. We also pay close attention to feedback, comments, critiques, and recommendations from journalists, fans, and music lovers who follow the scene closely, even if they’re not part of the L’Boulevard team.

This input enriches the direction of the festival, which aims to be useful to the Moroccan music ecosystem by supporting stagecraft and the professionalization of music careers. But the same old challenges remain: access to venues, professional training, and the development of performance spaces. That’s why, beyond the festival, we invest year-round in Boultek.

The good news is there are more venues than twenty years ago. The bad news is the supply is still too limited, and many emerging artists struggle to find enough stages to perform on. Social media can connect them with audiences, but stagecraft is its own skill, something you only master through years of live performance. Too many well-known artists still lack that experience.

Other structures are helping: the Hiba Foundation with La Renaissance, L’Uzine, the American Arts Center, the French Institute. L’Boulevard plays its part, but the ecosystem is still incomplete.

At L’Boulevard, you are pioneers. You were among the first to bring urban artistic expressions to live stages in Morocco. You combine this with a territorial dimension, making sure not to focus only on Casablanca. You feature artists from distant regions. Have there been success stories?

From the very beginning, this has been a deliberate choice in our programming and in the L’Boulevard Springboard. We have always highlighted artists from across the country. This year alone, fifteen Springboard participants came from eleven different cities and regions. Over the years, we’ve welcomed musicians from Oujda, Meknes, Tangier, Temara, Fez, Agadir, Ouarzazate, Casablanca, Tiznit, Nador, Sidi Kacem, and many towns in the southeast such as Errachidia, Boumendet, and Tinghir.

One group I particularly remember is Meteor Airlines from Tinghir, a model in their genre. They are emerging artists who managed to self-produce and innovate in remarkable ways, even in an environment that is far from ideal, especially given the heavy logistics that amplified music requires.

They are not like popular music ensembles that can play everywhere and secure steady income. Meteor Airlines is first and foremost a rock band, born in a region where its members are deeply rooted in their cultural heritage, the Ahidous, both musically and poetically. It’s music that shaped their lives, giving them a solid grounding in tradition while opening their sound to the world.

This reflects a broader principle that applies across Morocco: every region is unique, with its own ancestral richness. Meteor Airlines has succeeded in producing a sound that is both original and authentic to their identity. They have toured internationally, played in major festivals, and consistently released quality videos, again drawing from their heritage.

They have managed to produce not only quality but also lasting work, which is the greatest challenge for artists in this genre: to endure, to capitalize on their achievements, and to grow. Too often, we’ve seen promising projects collapse after only three to six years.

At L’Boulevard, we sometimes act as the bridge between young artists and other festivals. The Essaouira Gnaoua and World Music Festival was one of the first to program Springboard groups. Jazzablanca, Timitar, and even Visa for Music have done so as well.

It seems to me that our role is precisely to give these artists the chance to enter festival and stage circuits. When we provide favorable working conditions for creation and performance, they can structure themselves and plan their growth beyond survival.

At the same time, I believe festivals could greatly support this dynamic if they dedicated more space to emerging groups. It’s about ensuring the future of live performance while striking the right balance between established headliners, who draw large audiences, and giving young talent the visibility they need.

This has been L’Boulevard’s formula for rap and hip-hop, fusion and contemporary sounds, as well as rock and metal. This year, the quality of the Springboard was exceptional, and the young participants shared the stage with internationally renowned groups like Katatonia and Gorod. How are those encounters experienced behind the scenes?

Of course, we remain a generalist festival, embracing alternative and urban music in all its colors, while also presenting styles that appeal to a broader audience. The closing day, Sunday, is designed to be more family-friendly, offering varied styles accessible to all. But rock and metal remain the DNA of L’Boulevard.

For a day, our stage becomes a meeting ground where major international headliners and emerging local groups, Springboard bands just starting out, share the spotlight with artists who have been performing for twenty, thirty, or even forty years, like Katatonia and Gorod. They share the same dressing rooms, meet backstage, and connect. From the beginning of L’Boulevard’s adventure, this has been one of our core goals: to create a space for meaningful encounters that spark inspiration and emulation.

It’s incredibly motivating for young bands to meet their idols, who, beyond the stage, are often very approachable, generous, and genuinely curious about the local scene. This is especially true for metal, where all the international headliners we invite show real interest in both Springboard groups and those who have since built strong artistic foundations, like Thrillogy and many others.

This year, we programmed Pagan Ulver from Settat, winners of last year’s Springboard. They just released their debut album in August. They are young, disciplined, and hardworking. This is the only way to be heard, through perseverance and never giving up.

Over a quarter of a century, L’Boulevard has also built a culture of tribute and recognition. In past editions, you’ve honored figures like Tonton Samie and Mehdi Metallica. Are there contemporary figures that come to mind today?

There are so many, because this festival is carried by all of them. It would be impossible to single out just one, two, or three. L’Boulevard exists thanks to the collective effort of many, and it’s this shared sense of belonging that unites us, with the conviction that the festival belongs to everyone. You see it in the team, in the press area, where familiar faces return year after year. Everyone goes beyond what is asked of them, and that’s why we manage to build such cohesion and fluidity.

Of course, challenges exist, but they’re minor compared to the enthusiasm. If we, as organizers, are here, it’s precisely to solve them. We’ve had people with us for many years, and we’ve also welcomed new faces. Many young people join as interns, some start as volunteers lending a hand. This is how transmission happens.

Mohamed Merhari (Momo) and Hicham Bahou (left to right) / DR.

There are also figures who have long supported the festival, both inside and outside the team. They are discreet, but they are our pillars, and they’ll recognize themselves here. Momo and I may be the ones in the media spotlight, but it would be wrong to think that only the two of us hold L’Boulevard together.

Above all, there is the audience, whom we call on to come in large numbers, to see the artists perform live, and to keep this adventure alive!